Miss Loudoun Named Miss Virginia, Will Compete at Miss America Pageant

BY ALEXIS GUSTIN agustin@loudounnow.com

Miss Loudoun County Katie Scarlett Rose was crowned Miss Virginia 2023 on July 1 in Roanoke. She will represent Virginia at the Miss America Pageant later this year.

“I am incredibly honored, humbled and excited for this opportunity to reach so many people across the state and to make an everlasting impact,” she said.

Rose grew up in Martinsburg, WV, and qualified to compete in the Miss Virginia pageant because she attended both undergrad and law school in Virginia. Although not from Loudoun County, she chose to represent it in the pageant because it was close to where she lived.

The rules of Miss Virginia under the Miss America organization state a contestant must live in the state they wish to compete for 30 days prior to competition in a local pageant or must have fulfilled the eligibility requirements by educational status or employment.

“What a lot of people don’t know about the Miss America organization is, it’s the largest scholarship organization for women in the United States,” she said. “They really try to incentivize girls to compete where you live or work, but you can also compete where you go to school.”

She said growing up she was often in Leesburg for shopping or dining.

“Loudoun has never been my home, but it was always home,” she said.

Rose was named Miss Loudoun County on Dec. 3 after competing against eight other people, one of whom was from Loudoun County. Of the five contestants in the Miss Loudoun Teen competition that same night, only one, Madison Whitbeck was from Loudoun County. Whitbeck, a senior at Riverside High School in Leesburg, won Miss Loudoun County Outstanding Teen.

Executive Director of Miss Arlington and Miss Loudoun County Scholarship Organizations Briana Hanafin Mendonca, a former Miss Arlington, said it’s pretty typical for girls to compete in areas they don’t live.

Rose said she chose to compete in the pageant to make a difference across Virginia because she was spending the bulk of her time in the commonwealth.

“It is a way for me to make a lasting impact on the community and I get the lovely perk of going to the Miss America Pageant,” she said.

Rose has had two White House internships and three on Capitol Hill. She earned her law degree from the University of Richmond School of Law and holds a bachelor’s degree in government and politics from George Mason University. She plans to become a public policy lawyer or run for public office.

Contestants choose a community service initiative. Rose’s is ending domestic violence by “empowering women and enabling reform,” by encouraging others to continues on page 32